This invention pertains to preformed thermal insulation products and more particularly, it pertains to thermal insulation pads for sealing the gap space around window and door frames.
For ease of installation of a door or window, a gap space of about xc2xc to xc2xe of an inch is provided between the door or window frame and the wall opening in which it is installed. This gap space is normally insulated after the door or window is installed. Because this gap space is relatively thin, the insertion of insulation material therein is somewhat difficult and often inconsistent, as it is done by forcing loose insulation material into the gap space with the blade of a tool. This is often effected with too much compression or sometimes with not enough compression, resulting in improper insulation.
This problem has been partly addressed in the past and particularly, in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,204,373, issued to James D. Davidson on May 27, 1980. The invention described in this patent consists of a taped and compressed insulation strip which is mounted around a window or door frame. A rip cord is used to rip the tape after the installation of the window or door in a wall opening, causing the insulation to expand and fill the gap space between the window or door frame and the wall opening.
Although the taped and compressed insulation strip of the prior art deserves undeniable merits, it is believed that there continues to be a need for a new and improved thermal insulation pad which can be cut to different lengths and which is easy to work with. It is believed that there continues to be a need for a thermal insulation pad which is mountable into a wall opening prior to the installation of the window or door frame therein, and which can provide a continuous seal between the window or door frame and the weather and vapour barriers of the building.
The thermal insulation pad according to the present invention is preformed to fit common wall thicknesses, and can be precut to fit specific wall openings. It has sealing flanges to prevent the infiltration of air under the weather and air barrier, and the vapour barrier of a wall. The thermal insulation pad according to the present invention forms a smooth cushioned liner around a wall opening on which a window or a door frame is easily slid during its installation. The thermal insulation pad is made of compressible material for evenly filling and insulating the gap space between a window or door frame and the wall opening.
In accordance with one feature of the present invention, the thermal insulation pad comprises a compressible insulation strip having a rectangular cross-section, a top surface, a bottom surface, a first and second opposite sides; and a flexible top cover strip covering the top surface, and a flexible bottom cover strip covering the bottom surface. The thermal insulation pad also has a flashing flange extending widthwise from the top cover strip, from the first side, and an interior flange extending widthwise from the top cover strip, from the second side.
The thermal insulation pad is mountable as a liner around a wall opening with the flashing flange affixed to the outside surface of the wall and the interior flange affixed to the inside surface of the wall. The thermal insulation pad is mountable as a cushion liner inside a wall opening, wherein the surface thereof is stretched from the compressible insulation strip, to provide a smooth cushioned sliding surface on which a window or door frame can be slid during the installation thereof in the wall opening, to facilitate its installation.
In another aspect of the present invention, the thermal insulation pad also has a stapling flange extending widthwise from the bottom cover strip, from the first side. The stapling flange and the flashing flange are usable to enclose the edge of a weather and air barrier around a wall opening to prevent the infiltration of air under the weather and air barrier. Furthermore, the stapling flange and the flashing flange are sealed to each other along a bond line adjacent the insulation strip to prevent the infiltration of moisture from under the flashing flange and into the insulation strip, in cases where such moisture may occasionally seep under the flashing flange.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, the thermal insulation pad has lines printed thereon to facilitate the cutting of the pad according to the dimensions of a wall opening.
In yet a further aspect of the present invention, adhesive strips are provided on the stapling flange and on the interior flange to seal the thermal insulation pad to the weather and air barrier on the outside of a building and to the vapour barrier inside the building.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, the thermal insulation pad has one or more transverse notches therein for defining one or more shim pockets in the gap space for easy installation of shims to level or secure a door frame for example.
Still another feature of the thermal insulation pad of the present invention is that it is susceptible of a low cost of manufacture with regard to both materials and labour, and which accordingly is then susceptible of a low price of sale to the consumer, thereby making such thermal insulation pad economically available to the public.
Other advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment.